The Memory Keepers
by kickerdoodle
Summary: Roxas didn’t know that dying in a school bus accident along with a red-haired stranger would make the afterlife he was looking forward to so completely different then he had ever imagined. AU akuroku. More pairings later.


"Um- Hey. Hello? My names Roxas Breake. Yeah, I'm dead?" Roxas said with some with some uncertainty, the only time he had seen such cheesy scenarios like this they were on a television drama about alcoholics.

"Hello Roxas." The group circle replied in haphazard unison. Roxas made a quick note to study them. Some were sobbing silently to themselves; others just held a stoic expression on their faces. Roxas liked to think he was different then them. He wasn't sad, angry, upset, he wasn't happy, nor was he feeling a need to vocalize all his last regrets to anyone who would listen.

He was, to put it simply, Dead.

Nada. No more. Gone.

Why should he have to waste his afterlife with unnecessary emotions? Most psychiatric doctors have a diagnosis for this kind of mentality; denial.

"Roxas Dear, Why don't you tell the group how you died. That can usually help. If you want to talk about it." The leader of the group said her voice sweet and calming. Earlier she had introduced herself as Kairi Park. The fact someone his age could've been dead long enough to lead group therapy sessions for the recently deceased struck a little bit of sadness into him.

"I can- I can't remember. I'm sorry." Roxas looked at Kairi, and then to other group members. All seemed quite adamant on avoiding his gaze and muttering under their breath.

Those two things never made for good news.

"Oh dear." Kairi mumbled sadly as she snapped her lithe fingers and a large dusty leather-bound book appeared in mid-air with a crackling pop. She waved her hand in the air causing the pages to fly in its cover. They stopped on a page somewhere near the end, but Roxas couldn't see what the said pages were about from where he sat.

"School bus…..blah….Strangers…..ravine...Hmmm-. " Kairi trailed off, not talking to anyone in particular. A grim look plastered itself on her caring features.

"Roxas you may want to sit down." She murmured quietly. Most of the group, No, Scratch that. All of the group up and left, not wasting anytime to high tail it to the door.

"I am sitting down." She ignored him.

"Roxas, this book contains every single way or fashions a person can die and were they go in that situation. The place you're in at this moment- It's not heaven." She said her rehearsed lines without letting her voice break.

She had been doing this for 17 years but every time she had to tell stuff like this to people she still feels like shit afterwards. Just like seven dollar sushi bars. Seems like a good idea when a handsome tanned man offers you a job helping people in the afterlife. But then when you get there, the door locks itself behind you. If that makes any sense? Probably not.

"This isn't heaven, I don't understand. I never did anything wrong, I was good. I was just fuckin' amazing. I really don't get into heaven because of what happened with Hayner? Explain- please?" Roxas's Azure eyes were rimmed with translucent tears that slowly trailed down his now blotchy face. Kairi felt bad. Really bad. She never _tried _to be the horrid bitch in these kinds of situations, somehow It just always happens.

"Let me explain it to you Roxas. And please listen carefully. This book-" She waved it to her and it followed happily in the air. "This book, Tells the fate of everyone who dies in a certain way. When people are created they are implanted with a special purpose, that is, to follow a set assignment.

Some people are born to be killed during labor; others are born to die peacefully in their sleep. Every human was vast amounts of knowledge that can be only triggered after death. These little bits of knowledge, we call them 'imprints' here, tell you everything about the afterlife. Think of it as your after-death-freshman-seminar-class." She said the last part with a smile. Roxas looked into the maroon haired girls eyes.

"You knew I just started High-school?" Roxas asked incredulously. She nodded.

"I watched it on the video."

"What video?"

She waved the question off.

"We can go back to that. Anyway, When I heard that you couldn't remember the way you died I was instantly worried."

"Why?"

"Y'know how on prison shows people will be all like 'What're you in for?'" She asked rhetorically. Roxas wondered idly when he would be able to watch TV again.

"Well how you die is one of the imprints that stick with you forever. When you arrive your birthday is changed to the day you died, your 'Death-Day'. But whenever someone doesn't remember the way they 'kicked-the-metaphorical-bucket' that means that the book has bigger plans for them." She said. Roxas noticed that the said book was still floating in happy circles around Kairi's head.

"Kairi, how did I die?" Roxas asked. Though he wasn't sure of how much of an answer he wanted. Plus, the point for this to be a really sick dream had probably been passed awhile ago.

"That's what the video is. Every death is recorded from a great perspective. Everything is caught on film. Truly great stuff. But, are you sure your ready? "

"Yeah, I think so." Roxas said. Not convinced if he was telling the truth or not himself. Kairi seemed to notice, but she didn't say anything. She gave a flippant wave of her hand summoning a large glossy white screen to appear in front of them. It reminded him of the expensive ones that he and his friends would fantasize over on there way home from middle school. At the moment it felt like that happened a life-time ago, although that might not be to far from the truth.

"Here we go then. Tell me if you want it to stop." The video began, and Roxas fell into a determined state. He was going to make sure he remembered everything this time around.

_A radioactive yellow colored school bus pulled slowly and cautiously around a turn, much to the dismay of the impatient and recently awaked teenagers. Elderly bus driver, Rebecca Markel, was always cautious. Even if it upsets the passengers, or the administration of Hollow Bastion High because a small portion of their students keep arriving late because the bus gets there 20 minutes after the first bell._

_She always thought that the phrase 'better safe then sorry' was like a book in the bible. You just don't do dangerous things. So what if her life was extremely bland. And she hadn't had been on a date since her husband died 15 years ago. _

_She made it her mission that no one would ever die because of some stupid mistake that she had made. _

_Same thing applied to her bus-driving. She had some nerdy kid sitting in the set behind her to read her the stops on the list so she wouldn't have to take her eyes of the road. _

"_Next up, you should stop near those mail-boxes. On Twilight road." The friendless sophomore, Marluxia Hunt, Said. She pushed a few buttons that activated the pop-out stop sign and one that opened the door once they arrived on said road. Four passengers climbed on all of them looking nervous and jittery._

_Obviously freshman scared on their first day of high-school. The one leading had blonde hair that was spiked in a 'I'm a major disappointment to my family and I may act like I don't care. But I really do.' Way. He was leading them looking for an empty seat. He sat down on the edge of the seat. Another boy pushed past him to sit by the window, as the other he too had spiked hair. But the latter's hair was more like 'Either I just sat in front of a fan for an hour or I've just been sexed up.' Kind of-way. A fidgety girl and a big-boned boy dressed in un-matching colors sat together across from the other two. _

_Ms. Markel never liked to listen on other peoples conversations. Maybe, only on occasion though. Or if it was really juicy. Or if she was just bored. It was one of those times. Though she didn't let there voices distract her to much. _

"_I cant believe that were finally here. I remember our middle school orientation, now were starting high-school!" The girl, Olette, Said happily as she looked expectantly to all her male friends. Ms. Markel wondered vaguely how she dealt with all that testorone in one place._

"_Yeah, You've asked us this before O'. Were excited, really we are." The Blonde with the side-way-sex spikes, Roxas, Said. _Olette_ seems like she asked stuff like this a lot. _

"_Yo, Ms. M, Can-" _

"_No! Shut up and sit down." Some junior asked, who in his 3 years of riding bus 13, she never bothered to learn his name. She did know however, that he really was an expert in pissing people off._

"_I wonder what kind of food they have…" The chunky one, Pence, asked. _

"_Who cares, its still school." Blonde gelled spikes, Hayner, Said. _

"_Don't be like that, It'll be fun you'll see. We're going to start a whole new life in about fourteen minutes." Olette said happily, she always had a positive outlook on life. And that complemented the others personalities just fine. _

_Things went on like this for about ten minutes. The rest of the quartet's conversation had became to dull to hold her Ms. Markels interest. A few more stops, and she was soon pulling on to the winding (and quite slippery) road that let to Hallow Bastion High. _

_That's were the trouble began._

_The road was on an overhang that fell into a steep drop and down into a river. The only thing that would attempt to block anything from falling was a flimsy chain-link fence and some gravel._

_Not what anyone would call 'safe'._

_Ms. Markel had paid attention to the road as always. She paid the most attention here then anywhere else. As she always did. But there were a few deciding factors that no one could have seen._

_Like the tire running over a nail that had been dropped from a seniors car, but not on purpose. It was just a tiny thing that had come loose from a shabbily made Tech-ed project. No one would ever know that that's what caused a one ton bus to roll right over a hill. _

_No one would know that just a tiny nail (and a little help from a pre-determined fate) would cause two bodies to crash through the window. _

_No one would know the reason that two limp figure's blood mixed and danced in the raging waters. _

_Two figures. Both gone. One with yellow mussed up hair._

_The other was a named not yet learned. _

The movie (If that's what you wanted to call it.) was over By now Roxas was sobbing openly into his palms with his back hunched over. His body was shaking violently. Kairi patted him comfortingly.

"Kairi, I'm not the only one who died in that crash was I?" He said sloppily through a voice that was swimming with sadness and tears. She gave a small all-knowing smile. That smile made Roxas want to punch the girl who had shown her nothing but kindness since he started his afterlife.

"Lucky for you, someone else died that day too. His name's Axel."

"Maybe I should meet him?"

"That sounds like a good idea Roxas."

**Disclaimer- I don't own the characters or stuffs, just the plot. Good enough for you? **

**Anyhow, I got this idea when I was on the school bus to school. I know, Weird thing to think about while on a bus. But I really felt like making this. Plus, I have everything planned too. So please review and tell me what you think. I would really appreciate it. **

**Have any questions, I will try and help without giving to much away. **


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